Chapter Text
For Services Rendered Afterthoughts
By: Bunny
Rated: Teen 15 and up
Genre: Romance, Comedy, AR
Summary: RyoSaku, AR. A collection of extra "scenes" from the For Services Rendered alternate reality fic of mine. Mostly drabbles, some of the past, some of the present story time and some of the future. This isn't complete or incomplete each "chapter" will be a separate self-contained scene that just adds onto FSR...think "bonus features" on a DVD. So I will add little drabbles here as I think them up and write them out. Heh...it will probably be mostly fluff. ...cowers...
One - Ten Years Ago
Ten years ago in Tokyo...
Ryuzaki Sakuno (12 years old) has fallen into a very awkward position. Is it possible to safely get off at the next station?
What do I do?
"HAHAHAHAHAHA! You idiots still don't know the rules for gripping! To hit the top spin it's the western grip, ya know? I'm telling you, keep the racquet like this and hold it like you're shaking hands."
"OH! Of course Sasabe is different!"
"Stupid! This is common sense!"
Sakuno cowered out of the way as the racquet once again flew quickly past her face. WHOOSH, WHOOOSH, WHOOOSH went the air around her.
"Yo, can't you keep it down?"
Ah...? Sakuno looked up in surprise at the cute boy her age across the aisle that had spoken to the older boys on the train. WOW. What a cool guy! How had she missed seeing him across the way until now?
Was he saving her from these boys?
She watched the older boy startle and lose his grip on the racquet. It clattered onto the floor of the train for a second. Embarrassed, the older boy bent over and picked it up.
"Bingo! Holding the upper part of the racquet and clamping it, that's the correct western grip," The boy across the way added.
Sakuno stared across the way at the boy, instantly impressed. She didn't know much about tennis, but it soundedimpressive. Ah, and now that she was really looking at the boy, he did have a large tennis bag sitting next to him on the bench.
As the older boy stood back up with the racquet back in his hand, the boy her age across the way spoke up yet again, "Another thing. The thing you said about "shaking hands"? That's the eastern grip. It's common, for people to learn it the opposite way."
The friends of the older boy started laughing and teasing him as the train pulled to a stop and announced the station they'd arrived at. Distracted, Sakuno watched the older boys exit the train, and then looked back at the boy sitting across the way. He'd pulled his cap down, and was slouching in his seat.
The station was announced a final time, and Sakuno realized it was her exit. Horrified that she'd allowed herself to get so caught up in the commotion on the train that she'd almost missed her stop, she shot to her feet and rushed towards the door. As she ran past the boy, they briefly locked eyes, and he gave her a slight wink.
She'd already stepped off the train on onto the platform as she'd realized what had just happened, and she spun around to look at the boy again, thinking the wink had to have been her imagination. The doors closed shut. She took a step towards the direction the train was traveling, trying to get a final glimpse of the boy through the windows, and finally spotted the back of his head. The train started to move and she was suddenly overcome with a desire to run after the train, to stay with that boy, to follow him to wherever it was that he was going. Unconsciously, her steps followed along as the train began to pick up it's pace, and just as the boy was about to leave her view completely, his head turned around and looked back at her.
Startled hazel eyes met startled brown, and then, just like that, he was gone.
Sakuno slumped against one of the support pillars in the station, and wondered when her grandmother would arrive to pick her up. Now, more than ever, she was excited about learning more about tennis.
Maybe one day, she'd see that tennis prince from the train again.